Standpoint, the highbrow conservative monthly magazine edited by Daniel Johnson, is doing well by most indicators – the last two issues were their best-selling yet and their subscription base is rising month upon month. Like most highbrow publications it is not profitable.

Rival progressive magazine Prospect was set up as a for-profit publication yet never made a profit. It has now been taken over by the Resolution Foundation of Sir Clive Cowdery, so has a charitable structure. The Resolution Foundation/Trust has a £50 million endowment from Cowdery. The London Review of Books loses about £3 million per year – this is met through loans from trusts connected to its editor Mary Kay Wilmers and her brother. The Literary Review also has a very wealthy editor – Nancy Sladek – who subsidises it. Granta has an editor (and owner), Sigrid Rausing who is a billionaire. Despite progressive publications having a low circulation they are well funded…

The way Standpoint is structured is that it is owned and published – via a subsidiary – by the Social Affairs Unit, a UK registered charity. Standpoint has been struggling financially for some time. Their main patron has been reducing his support. He will have given the magazine £150,000 this year though there will be no support next year. Last year they raised £250,000 from other patrons, to continue during 2017 they will need to find an additional £250,000 in support/pledges of support over the next month – or sell the magazine. If they don’t do either they will likely fold, which will mean in the age of Alt-Right fake news the conservative cause will have lost a cultured voice…

Quote of the Day

Trump jokes about media bias…

“The media is even more biased against me than ever before. You want the proof? Michelle Obama gives a speech and everyone loves it. It’s fantastic. They think she’s absolutely great. My Wife Melania gives the exact same speech! And people get on her case! And I don’t get it! I don’t know Why!”